About this episode
Published March 26th, 2025, 08:34 pm
For a good chunk of the 20th century, railcars took Detroiters from point A to point B.
Along Gratiot and Grand River, people didn’t even own cars. They were too expensive, but there was also no reason to because streetcars crisscrossed Detroit and even went out to places like Port Huron and Ann Arbor.
In 2025, new cars are really expensive, car insurance is very costly, and public transit is worse today than it was 100 years ago. Today on The Metro, we’re looking at the history and future of public transit in the Motor City.
Guests:
Robert Pfaff: A professor of community and regional planning at Iowa State University. He wrote his dissertation at the University of Michigan about the history of Detroit’s streetcar system.
Robert Cramer: Director of Detroit’s Department of Transportation.
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